MK Tzvi Hendel (National Union), who said he once again was hearing gunfire outside his home in Gush Katif as he was talking this morning, reacted with undisguised anger to Olmert's plan:
"When he was mayor of Jerusalem, he had to act like a right-winger, because that's what the people of Jerusalem wanted. But now his mask comes off, and he comes out with these defeatist programs - first putting a yellow star on the goods made in Yesha, and now this. Who asked him to come up with these ideas!?"
"The left-wing ideology is that we will be overcome by the demographic problem if we don't take these steps," Arutz-7's Emanuel Shilo said.
"Don't tell me left-wing ideology - there's no such thing!" stormed Hendel. "Ben-Gurion and Rabin are turning over in their graves! Rabin never expected that this [man he called an] 'indefatigable' [undercutter Shimon Peres] and his poodle [Yossi Beilin] would bring upon us so many hundreds of dead... As far as the demographics go, there is no such problem - because the Arabs of Yesha are not Israeli citizens! The entire thing is a demagogic bluff. If he really wants to solve a demographic problem, why doesn't he come up with a solution for the growing hostile Israeli-Arab population within us...
"We warned the whole time that the retreat from Lebanon would teach Arafat that we can be chased away, that we have wimpy leadership that can be made to give in... It's all defeatism and small-mindedness."
Hendel says that what must be done now is to "work very hard on the Likud Central Committee to ensure that they don't allow these decisions to go through. Everyone who has any influence there - Manhigut Yehudit [of Moshe Feiglin], or anyone else - has to do whatever he can, every day and every hour, to convince the MKs and ministers. Now is the time. If we [National Union and the NRP] have to leave the government, then it will be too late - because Labor will join the government instead of us, and even the Likud MKs won't be able to make a difference."
Asked who in the Likud he thinks can lead such an effort against the left-wing slide, Hendel mentioned, "Natan Sharansky and Uzi Laundau are strong Jews, but I don't think they can really lead the Likud. Other possibilities are MK Gilad Erdan, and also MK Gideon Saar, who is very strong ideologically... Ministers Tzachi HaNegbi and Yisrael Katz as well, but regarding Bibi [Netanyahu] - very much to my sorrow, he has this ridiculous agreement with Arik Sharon that he won't intervene in Sharon's diplomatic moves and will back him, and in turn Sharon won't intervene in Netanyahu's economic policies and will give him full backing. We can't give up [on Netanyahu], of course; deep down, he is OK, and we have to keep working on him - because he really *could* be a leader."
"When he was mayor of Jerusalem, he had to act like a right-winger, because that's what the people of Jerusalem wanted. But now his mask comes off, and he comes out with these defeatist programs - first putting a yellow star on the goods made in Yesha, and now this. Who asked him to come up with these ideas!?"
"The left-wing ideology is that we will be overcome by the demographic problem if we don't take these steps," Arutz-7's Emanuel Shilo said.
"Don't tell me left-wing ideology - there's no such thing!" stormed Hendel. "Ben-Gurion and Rabin are turning over in their graves! Rabin never expected that this [man he called an] 'indefatigable' [undercutter Shimon Peres] and his poodle [Yossi Beilin] would bring upon us so many hundreds of dead... As far as the demographics go, there is no such problem - because the Arabs of Yesha are not Israeli citizens! The entire thing is a demagogic bluff. If he really wants to solve a demographic problem, why doesn't he come up with a solution for the growing hostile Israeli-Arab population within us...
"We warned the whole time that the retreat from Lebanon would teach Arafat that we can be chased away, that we have wimpy leadership that can be made to give in... It's all defeatism and small-mindedness."
Hendel says that what must be done now is to "work very hard on the Likud Central Committee to ensure that they don't allow these decisions to go through. Everyone who has any influence there - Manhigut Yehudit [of Moshe Feiglin], or anyone else - has to do whatever he can, every day and every hour, to convince the MKs and ministers. Now is the time. If we [National Union and the NRP] have to leave the government, then it will be too late - because Labor will join the government instead of us, and even the Likud MKs won't be able to make a difference."
Asked who in the Likud he thinks can lead such an effort against the left-wing slide, Hendel mentioned, "Natan Sharansky and Uzi Laundau are strong Jews, but I don't think they can really lead the Likud. Other possibilities are MK Gilad Erdan, and also MK Gideon Saar, who is very strong ideologically... Ministers Tzachi HaNegbi and Yisrael Katz as well, but regarding Bibi [Netanyahu] - very much to my sorrow, he has this ridiculous agreement with Arik Sharon that he won't intervene in Sharon's diplomatic moves and will back him, and in turn Sharon won't intervene in Netanyahu's economic policies and will give him full backing. We can't give up [on Netanyahu], of course; deep down, he is OK, and we have to keep working on him - because he really *could* be a leader."